A dozen and a half people gathered over at the Bethel AME church this evening to begin planning for a January celebration of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. It’s a diverse group, and not just racially but religiously and organizationally as well. In addition to Pastor Mark Green and lay leaders from Bethel AME, there were people from Trinity Lutheran, Grace Episcopal, the local Baha’i community, the local NAACP chapter, the Interchurch Council, New Life church, the Methodist church down the block, some others that I’ve now forgotten, along with two Unitarian Universalist ministers.

I happen to like going to committee meetings. Committee meetings are never boring because you get to watch a little human drama unfold as discussion ebbs and flows and ideas bounce back and forth. And you get to hang out with a group of people who care about something enough to give up an evening of their precious free time (I mean, hanging out with a group of people who want to maintain the legacy of Dr. King’s work — can you imagine a better way to spend an evening?). Yes, I do like committee meetings.

Of course every large committee has to have its subcommittees. I jumped at the chance to be on the publicity subcommittee, a perfect place for a former salesman who loves to do sales and project management and marketing communications. Plus that meant I got to avoid being on the program subcommittee, planning the music and the keynote speaker and lining up the requisite politicans to speak and all that (can you imagine wanting to be on the program committee? –sounds like work to me). And I get to avoid being on the finance subcommittee, the refreshments subcommittee, or one of those other subcommittees.

Which brings up a good, solid reason why diversity is a Good Thing. The world does need people who will take care of finances, and people who will (shudder) find a keynote speaker. Thank goodness for diversity, because diversity means I don’t have to do those things.